AROC GOES to ITALY, #3

Please Note: This tour is produced for the Alfa Romeo Owners Club (AROC). You are required to be a Club Member.You can join by contacting AROC at aroc.office@gmail.com

Welcome to our 2019 and third fabulous visit to Italy. Following our very successful 2017 and 2018 programs, we are gearing up for 2019. We’ll be including most of the highlights from the past trips and have added some new additions. Again, we’ll experience car manufacturers, museums, designers and, of course, incredible food. Highlighted are extraordinary days, with the new Alfa Romeo Museum, the ‘send off’ day at the Mille Miglia in Brescia and the final stage gathering at Monza. Sandwiched between these highlights are visits to manufacturers and showrooms like Lamborghini, Ferrari, Ducati, Maserati and naturally, Alfa Romeo. The hotels and locations mirror the quality of this program. We’ll be repeating visits to a couple of superb wineries and enjoying some of the finest lunches and dinners Italy has to offer. We are also adding on one day from the original tour to ensure we get to see and do everything.

The tour was originally conceived and formulated by AROC President, Cindy Banzer. “We wanted our members to have a real Italian experience, one that will introduce the history of the country’s amazing car industry, but also one surrounded with private visits and cloaked with great fun and camaraderie. The tremendous accolades we have received from past travelers have been truly rewarding, and we are sure our third offering will be as successful”. Once again, the tour has been carefully planned and scheduled in collaboration with Steve Austin’s Great Vacations. Steve is well known for his Classic Car Tours to Monaco, the Mille Miglia, Le Mans, the Goodwood Revival and Festival of Speed.

The program is inclusive of all transportation, accommodations, visits, and tours. All breakfasts and dinners or lunches* are included. Arrival and Departure airport is Milan’s Malpensa Airport. The tour price does not include air transportation to or from Italy. Along with Cindy Banzer, Steve Austin will accompany the tour and act as organizer and guide.

*The main course for the day may be a Lunch or Dinner (3 lunches, 7 dinners). Please note, Lunches in Italy are big, very much main courses. Ladies! There are no side tours planned for individuals. However, there are two or three days where one can easily split from the group and enjoy a relaxing day at the hotel, shopping or whatever.

TOUR DATE: May 12-22, 2018 11 days TOUR PRICE: $4,980 per person based on two to a room Single Room Supplement $1,450DEPOSIT: $1,000 per person (fully refundable up to December11, 2018) BALANCE DUE: Feb.1, 2019 CANCELLATION PENALTY: There are cancellation penalties starting on December 12, 2018. Trip Insurance is available.

ITINERARY

May 12 Arrival in Milan and transfer from Milan’s Malpensa airport to the I Portici Hotel (4star). Reception and dinner at our hotel (3 nights).

May 13 This morning, we head to Maranello, the home of Ferrari. First a visit to the ‘Ferrari Galleria’, which has become an excellent exhibition. There will be plenty of time to visit the many Ferrari and F1 shops. Lunch is on your own, but we can book tables for you at the ‘Cavalino’ or ‘Montana’ restaurants, or you can opt for a number of small trattorias or pizza bars. Mid afternoon, we head back toward Modena for a visit to the unique Parmaggiana Cheese Factory, where strangely is housed the historic Maserati Collection. Our final visit today is in Modena for the quite recently opened Enzo Museum. This evening, we dine at an Italian Ristorante close to our hotel.

May 14 This morning, we tour both the Ducati and the Lamborghini factories, a great double header. Our all time most popular lunch venue is a small family restaurant in the Emilia Romagna countryside, where we might be lucky to get a pasta making demonstration. This afternoon, we schedule a visit to the remarkable Righini Collection, one which has to be seen to be believed. This evening, is at your leisure in Bologna.

May 15 Today, we make an early start for Brescia, and our first glimpse of the Mille Miglia. First, we visit the town center where all the cars are registering and preparing for the afternoon ‘off’. At lunchtime, we head for the Mille Museum. All the cars journey from the center and are staged here before the official start this afternoon. We’ll be able to watch the cars as they head out on the Mille course amid enthusiastic support from the crowds lining the route. Later this afternoon, we head for Lake Garda and the Grand Hotel Gardone (4star - 3 nights). Dinner this evening at our hotel on the lake.

May 16 Today is our first ‘catch your breath’ day. A late morning drive to Mantova for a visit to Italy’s early motor racing hero and Alfa Romeo ‘pilota’, Tazio Nuvolari, the Mantovan Flyer. His small museum and the attractive town center makes for a nice ‘low key’ day. This evening, we dine at a lakeside family restaurant.

May 17 This morning, we head across Lake Garda to the eastern shore. Our first visit is to the Alegrini Vineyards. Set in an amazing medieval ‘palazio’ with beautiful surrounding hillsides, we will be tasting some of the finest wines of Italy. Following our wine tasting, we take a short drive to the gorgeous setting of the Punta di San Vigilio, a famous restaurant where we’ll enjoy a late ‘al fresco’ lunch. With views across the lake, and water lapping gently against the sides of the restaurant, this really denotes ‘idyllic’. We return to our hotel via a lake ferry.

May 18 We depart Lake Garda for Milan and, eventually, the lakeside Barchetta Excelsior Hotel (4star -2 nights) on Lake Como. We have a really exciting day planned. This morning, we travel to Monza, home of Italian motor racing. The Mille Miglia cars will be arriving all throughout the day. In the afternoon, we journey to Arese and the Alfa Romeo Museum. This recently reopened museum follows the history of Alfa Romeo from inception to present day. This evening, following check in, we dine at our Lakeside hotel.

May 19 Our second chance to take a breath, a day on Lake Como. A ferry takes us from our base at Como to the lovely and popular village of Bellagio. A beautifully located restaurant offers one of the finest lunches on all of Lake Como. There will be plenty of time to explore the little hamlet of Bellagio. Be sure to take your camera and flat shoes, it’s hilly! The late afternoon and evening is at your leisure in the very lively Como.

May 20 This morning, following breakfast, we visit a private, small exotic collection in Milan. Our recently discovered Lambretta Museum will be our second visit, then we end up with a large Alfa Romeo collection. In the late afternoon, we depart for Turin and the NH Lingotto Hotel (4star -2 nights). Upon our arrival, we have the opportunity to go onto the roof of the Lingotto, which was originally the test track for FIAT. Also, the fine art display of the Agnelli Art Gallery is bound to impress. Dinner tonight is at our hotel.

May 21 A morning visit to the Museo dell ‘Automobile Carlo Biscaretti di Ruffia’, one of the finest auto museums in all Europe. It houses the largest collection of historic cars in Italy. Our final dinner of the tour is at a magnificent winery south of Turin in the Alba region. As this tour prides itself on the great food of Italy, we can safely predict you are going to be amazed. The effort and presentation of our meal is consistent with the finest restaurants of Paris and Rome. Prepare yourself for some of the great wines of the region.

May 22 This morning, following breakfast we head back to Milan and Malpensa airport, concluding our 2019 tour.

Please Note: This tour is produced for the Alfa Romeo Owners Club (AROC).You are required to be a Club Member. You can join by contacting AROC at aroc.office@gmail.com